Cushman & Wakefield has appointed its former Atlanta office head to steer the firm's growth in the multifamily industry.

The global commercial real estate brokerage firm announced this week that John O'Neill has been named president of its U.S. Multifamily Capital Markets division. Long a fixture in the Metro Atlanta commercial real estate community, O'Neill was promoted again after being named president of C&W's U.S. Central region in August 2020.

O'Neill was managing principal of C&W's Atlanta office from 2012 to 2016, according to his Linkedin profile, before being elevated as head of the Southeast and South Central region until 2020. Tyler Courtney has been Cushman & Wakefield's managing principal in Atlanta since last year.

“John will continue to be based in Atlanta and oversee the Central region with an adjusted leadership structure while we conduct an internal and external search for the next Central Region President,” a Cushman & Wakefield spokesperson said in an email.

The appointment comes more than a month after Cushman & Wakefield announced that it was making a $500M strategic investment in Greystone, acquiring 40% in the real estate finance company's agency, FHA and servicing business. That deal closed Dec. 6.

In his new role, O'Neill will oversee Cushman & Wakefield's multifamily capital markets service line and lending capabilities.

“John’s leadership over the course of his tenure at our firm, both internally and in the broader U.S. Central region, has been exceptional to witness,” Cushman & Wakefield Americas CEO Andrew McDonald said in a press release.

Cushman & Wakefield supercharged its push into multifamily last year when it purchased Pinnacle Property Management Services, the third-largest apartment property management firm in the U.S.

“The multifamily sector presents a tremendous opportunity for our firm, and I’m excited to grow our offerings and expertise in this space,” O’Neill said in a statement.